[5e DnD] West Marches Style Campaign [Closed]

[RedKnight]

UPDATE: I found enough interest in a 5e Based Open/Shared World (aka West Marches Style) that I'm putting together an advertisement. 

Right now, I'm committing to 1)Running a single adventure as GM and 2)Building a draft of the framework for the shared world.

Rules for Character Creation and Eventually Other Stuff
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For the past 4+ years, I have been a part of a group running a PbP WestMarches style game on another forum.

A WestMarches Style supports multiple GMs and allows for players coming and going.  A GM and a group of players get together for an adventure.  I have found the format to work out well. 

• GMs can shift between GMing and playing.
• GMs and players can take a break without shutting down the game.
• It is easier to find existing players and GMs.

When you express your interest, please let me know if you are interested in being a GM and or player.

FAQs

• Why Elliquiy? The forum on which I am gaming has a strict PG-13 limit. I'm here on Elliquiy to be able to explore some more mature themes.
• Why 5?  Why not another system?    5e is widespread, and I have several years of experience with it.  I would encourage others to start a WestMarches style campaign using their favorite system.
• What Category (e.g., Exotic, NC, Extreme) would the Campaign go in? This detail is one of these TBD details of running a shared campaign on Elliquiy. I hope that each group can adjust on an adventure by adventure basis.  One group might find Light or Light exotic works for them, while another group might want to play in NC or Extreme.

[Mister Ugly]

I am interested! I have gmed but never in the West Marches

[PhantomPistoleer]

I love this idea.  I tried to do something like it with a Pathfinder Society group, but I was never able to pull it off.

I'd love to try this out as a player, but I don't feel very comfortable GMing 5e, though I've tried.

[RedKnight]

I am interested! I have gmed but never in the West Marches

IMO, GMing in a good West Marches is actually easier than running a solo game.  You have a group to ask for advice (and stuff like adventure reviews).  As well, The Characters are already reviewed and set. In addition, I have done a number of variations on helping out - e.g., ride along as a player, co-DMing, helping/reviewing building a GM outline.

[Autocad]

How does WestMarches work exactly and how does it differ from, say, Dungeons Overlords vs Adventurers here on E?

[ihinka]

@RedKnight, you know about my experiences with the West Marches... XD But I will try to lend my assistance to this, at least once, as a player.

[RedKnight]

How does WestMarches work exactly and how does it differ from, say, Dungeons Overlords vs Adventurers here on E?

@Autocad

I’m not familiar with Dungeon Overlords or Adventurers.  As well, groups can tweak the West Marches format. 

The intent of the West Marches format is to have a pool of players and GMs.  A smaller group gets together out of the pool and agrees on playing an adventure.  At the end of the adventure, the group goes back into the pool.  So, a player might have GM A for an adventure, be the GM for an adventure, and then have GM B for another adventure.

Mechanically, each player creates a character (with review/approval).  Then there is a Party Planning thread where the players (including GMs) discuss what they are interested in playing. Once a group is formed, they create a pair of threads OOC and IC for the adventure.  At the end, the characters split the loot and experience and then go back to the pool.

The West Marches group in which I’m playing has found that milestone advancement (e.g., 1 level every adventure) and relatively fixed duration adventures (e.g., 3-4 months depending on posting speed) works out well.   

This approach does require a bit more coordination between the GMs. We have found that the coordination is mostly around character progression (e.g., allowable races and classes, how to distribute treasure).

In terms of adventures/stories within the West Marches, I have seen a wide sweep from mostly a dungeon raid to a murder mystery (involving no combat).

@ihinka, I know your concern about getting one line responses in the West Marches.  Additionally, there is a issue of how much and what types of Errotica/Smut will be in an adventure.  My plan is to use some version of an abbreviated Session 0 and Game Palette.  This combined with players O/O should allow forming compatible groups for an adventure.

If/When I get enough interest, I’ll run an initial adventure to give people a feel for the format.

[mjrbatou]

I tried playing the dungeons and adventurers large group a year or two ago but none of the adventuring groups were available for the entire adventure.

On that note I'd love to offer adventures and characters, even an entire party if desired.

[Chulanowa]

You've got my interest

Edit to add: I'm mostly looking to be a player.

[Thera Regina]

Will this work with Neverwinter too?

[mjrbatou]

My forested thicket/maze and my cult may yet live again!

I feel unusually excited about this, I may start planning characters again.  More so if I can make aesthetic alterations to things.

[RedKnight]

@Thera Regina, Neverwinter, yes. GMs should be able to use whatever World/Campaign they want.

@mrbatou, my experience is that things work well as long as the adventure rewards (Advancement and Treasure) are relatively consistent across GMs and adventures.

[Ehkoe]

I'm always craving more D&D myself, so consider me interested - though I don't really have experience with pbp style games.

[Mister Ugly]

@Redknight and others::

I have some questions as both a player and a possible GM.
Would a setting area help people decide. If I understand WestMarches, we need a starting locale. Normally a Town or village and some idea of the area round abouts.
I would like to suggest either an Island or a peninsula. A coastal town allows land and water adventures as well as trading and a way to have new people arrive in the area.

I really like this and have at least one character idea ready to make and also already glimmers of several adventures.

Count me!

MU

[RedKnight]

A few things. First, there is enough interest that I’m going to start a West Marches Campaign here. However, I have got my arms full with games and some IRL stuff. So, I’m going to take it a bit slow.

A bit of history and then some answers.  I actually did not start the West Marches Campaign in which I’m currently one of the GMs.  Someone else started it and then abandoned it.  Another player and I stepped in and took it over.  So, we inherited a bunch of guidelines.  Over time, we have kept what worked (for us) and adjusted what didn’t. BTW, I have watched this happen with a pair of Shared Worlds - the originator getting burned out and stepping away, only for the other GMs/players to step up and take over.

The original West Marches had the concept ‘boring inside the wall, dangerous outside’.  This meant combat-centric to combat-exclusive adventures and only Wilderness adventures. We did away with that, and are in the process of moving towards a multi-verse game (e.g., Inifinite Staircase, Hall of Doors, Calahan’s Cross-Time Saloon).  I would encourage people not to limit the game to a single world - hence my comment - ‘Neverwinter should be fine’. This would allow people to use various WoTC worlds - e.g., Ebberon, Faerun, etc. as well as Homebrew Worlds.  Personally, I’m leaning towards the Mall at the end of space and time, where heros are recruited to handle various problems.

As a software geek (can you be former if you are retired?), I like stuff that is strongly cohesive and loosely coupled.  In Game-speak, this means that the GM has tight control over the individual adventure, and there is a minimal interface between adventures.

What we are using in the West Marches Campaign currently is Milestone Adventure.  Adventures are of approximately the same size/duration (6-9 encounters -typically 4-6 combat, and run around 3-4 months real time and say 36 or so posts).  Characters get a level dependent amount of treasure per adventure.

Now, a couple of suggestions that I would like to implement that would be different here.  First would using a consistent character generation method (e.g., Point Buy possible supplemented with a few extra points, and or an extra feat).  Second, I think that it would be more fun/interesting to allow characters to start at 3rd level.

GMing, some people love it, some people hate it.  What I have found in the West Marches is that there is some extra overhead - from helping orient new players, to researching how to handle the cross-adventure aspects of the game (e.g., Downtime, Crafting, Treasure), to help with some useful Guides. 

What I would like to do is to consider anyone willing to ‘help’ with maintaining the World a GM.  We have discussed various ‘perks’ (e.g., extra level or treasure) for being a GM in my old West Marches campaign.  However, the only perk on which we have settled is being able to run more than one character at a time.

Let me tease my first adventure. It is going to be ‘Silk Road Caravan’.  The group will be part of a caravan traveling in the Wilderness between two Empires/Outposts in my Homebrew world - Samarkand (in the Dragon Empire) and Terminus (on the Edge of the Phoenix Empire).
         

[Mister Ugly]

I am up for helping maintain the setting and offering locales and adventures, once I am sure of how leveling works for this.

May I suggest that since you have this 'Silk Road' that would be the west Marches setting. Close to the road is lower level adventures. Further out all sorts of things. Gms can make a place along the silk road. Example I would make an Inn/Tavern and the area around it if I were to GM.

Not being limited can be good and bad. As GM I would not be pleased to find the players now have laser pistols and cyberware but I guess i would figure out how to handle things.  ;D ;D

I do have the old Sigil adventure setting which would be fun to have players end up at.

HMmmmm!!!

MU

[RedKnight]

A lot of things can be changed by the collective GMs.  However, what I am going to for in the Campaign as a whole is - The Mall at the End of Space and Time.  A multi-world location, where adventurers can re-group/plan, buy/sell gear and generally socialize. 

So, the Silk Road Caravan might be a setting for one or more adventurers.  However, the other GMs would not be locked it the location. For example, I have read about but never played in Neverwinter, so I would be excited to have Thera Regina run an adventure (or perhaps a campaign) there.

I had planned on getting up a recruiting post and possibly a few initial threads.  However, IRL events have overtaken me. So, below are the bullet points for character generation. If people are interested, feel free to begin crafting a character.

Next up is a pair of bullet lists (and examples) for GM posting and adventure posting.

Stuff that is still TBD is adventure duration, advancement, and treasure/magic.  My general plan is to crib a bit from UA (or appendix) about Open/Shared worlds.
- All adventures would be a relatively fixed length (e.g., certain number of scenes/encounters and a max IRL time)
-Advancement would be Milestone Based (e.g., 1 Adventure/Level)
-Treasure would be tied to level - e.g., the characters level would set the amount of mundane and magical gear they should have
- I would set the treasure level for a ‘low magic’ world, which would allow the GM to provide additional gear at the beginning of an adventure as they feel suits the adventure.


Character Creation
- All Official WotC Sourcebooks (e.g., PHB, SCAG, XGtE, TCoE)
- TCoE Customization of Origin is allowed
- 27 point Buy
- 3rd level
- 500 gold, and 1 Common Magic Item
- Custom Backgrounds allowed

[RedKnight]

UPDATE: I found enough interest in a 5e Based Open/Shared World (aka West Marches Style) that I'm putting together an advertisement. 

Right now, I'm committing to 1)Running a single adventure as GM and 2)Building a draft of the framework for the shared world.

Priority for this new adventure will be people interested in helping flesh out the shared world - e.g., GM an experience, help new players with character creation, assistance in developing the 'few' cross adventure rules.

...and does anyone know what it takes to start a game in one to folders? Can anyone create a thread, or is some permission required?  I'm thinking of the following three threads in Elliquiy:
1) Character - ideally one post/character
2) OOC - may eventually split into party planning vs. rules questions
3) IC - in character RP outside of adventures

Then the party (including GM) will decide where to run the adventure(s).

Rules for Character Creation and Eventually Other Stuff

[Thera Regina]

@Thera Regina, Neverwinter, yes. GMs should be able to use whatever World/Campaign they want.

@mrbatou, my experience is that things work well as long as the adventure rewards (Advancement and Treasure) are relatively consistent across GMs and adventures.

Awesome! Makos here I come baby!

[ihinka]

I am not a huge fan of Point Buy and only official materials, but eh, I get the necessity with shared world campaigns. As long as it's not actual GMing, I'll help out with stuff.

[Ehkoe]

If you need a site for character sheets, I'm happy to provide content sharing on D&DBeyond. I have every official WotC book on there and the tools allow me to share with up to five 12 player campaigns.

[RedKnight]

If you need a site for character sheets, I'm happy to provide content sharing on D&DBeyond. I have every official WotC book on there and the tools allow me to share with up to five 12 player campaigns.

Ehkoe,

Thank-you for your generous offer. My current West Marches campaign actually has around 14 active campaigns, each with 4-6 players.  Additionally, I have watched a significant number of GMs come and go.  So, I am cautious about linking resources to a single person.

I think for now, I will allow players to create a character sheet wherever they want, as long as it is publicly accessible.

[Isengrad]

I think for now, I will allow players to create a character sheet wherever they want, as long as it is publicly accessible.

Mythweavers is a good site for that, and I do have a list of resources for D&D to use for those that wish to contact me.

I would also suggest Exploring Ebberon as a resource, gives a few more options and is written by the original creator of Ebberon setting for the 5e ruleset. That along with Explorers guide to Wildemount is almost Sanctioned 3rd party

[RedKnight]

Mythweavers is a good site for that, and I do have a list of resources for D&D to use for those that wish to contact me.

I would also suggest Exploring Ebberon as a resource, gives a few more options and is written by the original creator of Ebberon setting for the 5e ruleset. That along with Explorers guide to Wildemount is almost Sanctioned 3rd party

Isengrad, makes a few good points.  For simplicity purposes, I/we use the list of Sourcebooks from DnD Beyond as the official list.  Explorer’s Guide to Wildmount is on the list.  I would like to steer clear of ‘Exploring Eberron’, because there is some variation in the material - e.g., Artificer and Warforged varied slightly between the two documents. 

Also, I encourage reaching out to people with more experience in character design.  The good and the bad of 5e/WotC is that there is a ton of material out there - races, classes, abilities, not to mention Spells. 

[RedKnight]

A quick update, I have added a section to the linked Google Doc called Game Pallette.  This is what the group will collectively develop for describing an adventure. 
Crossroads(Open/Shared World)